The Garden Bridge Trust has announced that the proposed footbridge between the South Bank and Temple “cannot be delivered” and the charity will be wound up.
In a statement this morning the trust blamed a lack of support from mayor of London Sadiq Khan for the failure of the project.
Lord Davies, chairman of the trust, said: “It is with great regret that trustees have concluded that without Mayoral support the the project cannot be delivered. We are incredibly sad that we have not been able to make the dream of the Garden Bridge a reality and that the mayor does not feel able to continue with the support he initially gave us.
“We had made great progress obtaining planning permission, satisfying most of our planning conditions and we had raised £70 million of private money towards the project.
“The Garden Bridge would have been a unique place; a beautiful new green space in the heart of London, free to use and open to all, showcasing the best of British talent and innovation. It is all the more disappointing because the Trust was set up at the request of TfL, the organisation headed up by the mayor, to deliver the project.
“It is a sad day for London because it is sending out a message to the world that we can no longer deliver such exciting projects.”
In May, Khan announced he would not provide the financial guarantees needed for the project, dealing a killer blow to plans.
The controversial scheme has been criticised for years due to cost, ownership and public access.
A review of the project in April said £37.4m had been spent and it would cost taxpayers £46.4m even if it was cancelled.
Dame Margaret Hodge, who carried out the review into whether the bridge offered taxpayers value for money, recommended the project should be scrapped.
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Cancellation, this is the best news for ages. It would have blighted the centre of London and was completely unnecessary. It would also have been a drain on taxpayers many of whom opposed this.
One word – SCANDALOUS!
Up here in the north, we are still putting up with outdated Pacer trains that are years beyond their sell-by date. So no tears from us re. the useless Garden Bridge.
I agree that cancellation is the best news. This was a luxury project when money should be spent on necessity projects. Glad you got a grip TfL.
Having just had the huge pleasure – along with thousands of delighted visitors to NYC – of walking along the ‘Highline’ in Manhattan, built along a disused elevated railway line, it is regrettable that the garden bridge project has had to be cancelled, despite the clearly difficult financial realities. I’ve no idea about the level of competence of the Trust concerned, but it seems to me that some things are worth doing just because ‘they’re worth it’…..
The bridge is a complete waste of money and I am glad it has been scrapped. We need more crossings to the east for more traffic that we will be getting in the next few years.
Andrea Kelmanson – please read this article to see why the Graden Bridge should not and can not be compared to the High Line https://www.facebook.com/TCOSLondon/posts/1094191443945746:0
In short, the High Line made good a disused railway line – it was a genuine regeneration project that is currently suffering from being too ‘gentrified’. The Garden Bridge would have bastardised protected views of London with its brand new, unnecessary, wasteful vanity project that would’ve been wholly private/corporate and brought dangerous congestion to an overcrowded part of London that already has 26 million visitors. It would have privatised a public right of way – a large boulevard of open green public space, over 35 x 25m high mature trees and a large grassy area – left to Londonders who don’t have a garden. Where’s the sense in that?